


Five Things

by epeeblade



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Spoilers, F/M, Feels, Gen, Post-Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Self-Indulgent
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-06
Updated: 2019-05-06
Packaged: 2020-02-27 07:18:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,115
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18734266
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/epeeblade/pseuds/epeeblade
Summary: Full title is a spoiler, see Author's Notes for the summary as well.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Original Spoiler-Filled Title: Five Times Morgan Stark Needed her father but got an Avenger instead (and one time she just needed her mother)
> 
> It's pretty long anyway, so not sure it would have fit in the title field:)
> 
> Thanks to Lapillus for looking at this, and to my friends on my DW who answered my panicking question about spoiler titles.

**Age 11 - The Science Fair**

This had been a terrible mistake. When Morgan had been assigned a project for her school science fair, Pepper had reached out to Bruce via his Avenger email to see if he had any thoughts or if he could put her in contact with someone who had some time to help out. She knew Morgan loved science, but Pepper had her own limitations. Tony would want Morgan to have something special. No model volcano for his kid.

She didn’t expect half a dozen Avengers showing up at the farm, each with a different idea. 

Morgan sat next to Pepper on the couch, her eyes wide as each of them presented their samples.

“Contrary to popular belief, Gamma radiation is actually quite safe,” Bruce was in the middle of his talk, standing next to a holographic model. “I think together we can probably build a mini gamma generator in about a month.”

“You want. My daughter. To build a gamma radiation generator.” Pepper tried to keep her tone light.

“Pfbht,” Clint said, or at least that’s what it sounded like. He came forward with a cardboard box with a window cut out of one side. They could see a bunch of yarn crisscrossing the inside. “Let’s talk about physics. Specifically angles. In order to shoot an arrow, you need to calculate degree, force, and take into consideration wind speed.”

“Just to hit a bullseye?” Morgan asked confused.

Clint got very red in the face. “Well…”

“You guys are overthinking this way too much.” Scott came to the front, his project covered with what looked to be a checkered tablecloth. “Two words, kid. Potato battery.” He unveiled his creation, showing a blinking light bulb attached to a potato that appeared to be sizzling. 

Well. At least that one was age appropriate. Pepper opened her mouth to comment, but before she could there was the sound of drumming? She looked around to see two Dora Milaje entering the front door, flanking the king of Wakanda on either side.

“Your majesty!” Pepper got to her feet, slightly horrified. She was not dressed to meet royalty.

He waved her to sit with a smile. “I hear we have a budding scientist here. To honor her, I have brought a Vibranium construction set. It is the very same that Wakanda children use to learn at home.” He clapped his hands, and two more women appeared, pushing forward a chest that appeared to be hovering a few inches off the ground. They set it in front of Morgan, bowed and then slid away.

Pepper wished she could move with that sort of grace. “While this is certainly very generous of you, I don’t necessarily think it’s a good idea for her to bring Vibranium to school.”

“Please, accept it for the gift it is.” He gestured, the box opened, and Pepper really wished Tony was there to explain all of this to her.

She found her eyes getting wet and she swallowed down a sob. It had been six years. Was she ever going to stop missing him?

“I think,” Morgan said, sitting forward. “I want to do the potato battery.”

“Yes! Finally!” Scott fist bumped.

***

Afterward she gathered everyone in the kitchen - while Morgan played with her potato battery - and said, “While I appreciate all of you coming out here, I think this experience was a little overwhelming for Morgan.”

And for Pepper, but she kept quiet about that. “So, perhaps, next time, could you limit it to perhaps one or maybe two of you?”

“If that’s what you want?” Bruce said. He held out his good hand and she shook it. 

The crowd of Avengers made their way out of her kitchen and her home. Clint paused at the door. “Invitation is still open, you know. She and Nate are close enough in age.”

Pepper didn’t know if she could be parted from Morgan for an entire summer. But it might be good for her to be around Clint’s kids for longer than a weekend. They’d known Tony too. “I’ll let her decide.”

He nodded and gave a small smile before leaving. 

Pepper waited on the porch for a beat and then said, “Peter, you can get off the roof, now. She’s not going to be making any Parker-tech either.”

“Aw, man.” 

He leapt down, wearing the new stealth suit that made him look almost transparent. She still couldn’t quite get used to it, even though Peter had spent so much time here in Tony’s old workshop perfecting it. It had been one of the projects Tony had been working on during the quiet years. Somehow he’d known Peter would be coming back. 

“Aunt May sent some cookies anyway. Not that she baked them. She got them from an Italian bakery down the street.”

“Well, if you have cookies.” Pepper grinned. “I’m sure Morgan would be happy to see you.” 

She stepped out of the way and let him precede her into the house. Pepper looked up at the stars, the sky a dangerous place now. But the universe seemed quiet for the moment.

 

**Age 16 - Learning to Drive**

“All right, so before you do anything, you want to check all the gauges. Make sure you have enough gas, the car isn’t overheating, yadda yadda.”

“Come on, Bucky. She doesn’t care about that stuff. Just let her put the car in gear and drive.” 

“Excuse me, Mr. Backseat driver. I believe I’m the one up here doing the instructing.”

“That’s because you wouldn’t let me drive.”

“Because you drive like an old man.”

“I AM an old man.”

Morgan decided she’d rather listen to Captain America’s advice, so she put the car in drive, put her foot on the gas, and took off down the dirt road that wound around the farm. 

 

**  
Age 17 - First Date**

Happy Hogan looked in the rear view mirror with one eye, checking out the young man who sat stiffly in his back seat. “You know kid, if you break her heart, you’ll have to answer to every Avenger on Earth, and some that don’t even live on Earth.”

In fact, they’d all argued over who’d get to give the shovel talk. Pepper had told him about it afterward. Apparently she’d lectured the bunch of them on sexism and that Morgan could handle herself, thank you very much.

And then she’d quietly asked Happy to be the chauffeur for the night. 

It was nice, going back to his roots. Made him think about all the crazy adventures he got into driving Tony, then Peter, around. Man, he was getting old.

“I’m not planning on breaking her heart.” The kid shook his head and let out a little laugh.

“What, is this funny to you?” Happy couldn’t resist ribbing him a little.

“What? No.” He leaned forward. “It’s just...this is Morgan. She built her own Iron Girl suit out of vibranium when she was fourteen. Compared to that...the Avengers aren’t scary at all.”

His eyes lit up with something - admiration. 

Good. He was on the right track. Happy pulled into the front drive and he could already see Morgan waiting on the front porch. He threw the car into park and turned around. He had something to say.

“Just remember. That young woman up there is like a daughter to me. You might not find the Avengers scary, but you don’t know me, kid. Treat her with respect, you hear?”

“Yes, sir.”

Job done.

**  
Age 21 - First Drink**

“I have come, fair Pepper, to accompany your daughter, Morgan Stark, child of Tony, on this momentous occasion.”

Morgan blinked at the blond giant standing in the middle of their living room. Was this guy for real? She knew he’d been in the Avengers with her dad, but he’d been in space since she was a kid. 

Her mom had said she could go out with friends for her 21st birthday -- if she had a chaperone. And then mom had suggested one of dad’s old friends. Morgan just hadn’t expected Thor, who hadn’t been seen on Earth in over ten years.

“It is a shame that I cannot show her the famed drinking halls of Asgard.” He put a hand on his ample chest and sighed, his long blond braids falling to either side. “Vegas is but a pale substitute, but it will have to do.”

Morgan’s jaw dropped. “We’re going to Vegas. Mom! Thank you!”

Mom didn’t look quite happy. “You didn’t say anything about Vegas.”

Oh great. Looked like her night out was going to end even before it began.

“That was before my companions offered to be the designated flyers, as you say.” Thor gestured to the front door that opened to reveal two very familiar looking women. Morgan would know the Queen Valkyrie of Asgard anywhere, and the magazines had been filled with pictures of Captain Marvel forever.

She stepped backwards and fell onto the couch. “These are my chaperones?” 

Valkyrie grinned. “Don’t worry. We’ll keep an eye on both of them.” She slapped Thor on the shoulder and he grinned back. He kinda reminded Morgan of a giant puppy. 

Mom seemed to relax. “Please take care of her.”

“Always.”

The hangover the next day was totally worth it. How often did she fly in spaceships and have Thor get an entire bar to sing an Asgardian drinking song? Morgan would never forget it.

 

**Age 27 - Wedding**

Morgan stared at her reflection in the mirror. She’d just put on her lipstick, doing it slowly so the photographer could grab some good photos. Although they weren’t really candids if she was posing for them, were they?

“What are you thinking?” Mom said in a whisper, and for a moment, with her bridesmaids laughing on the other side of the room, it felt like it was just the two of them.

“Too many things,” she answered, unable to really gather the mess of her thoughts and put it into form so someone else could understand.

“If you’ve changed your mind, we can call the whole thing off,” Mom said, very seriously.

So seriously that Morgan did think she was joking. She laughed. Mom didn’t.

“Of course I still want to marry him!” she blurted. “I can’t imagine not having him in my life.”

Mom squeezed her shoulders, a smile finally appearing on her face. “Okay. I’d hate to have to be the one to tell Clint we were backing out.”

No, Uncle Clint would not take that well at all. “What do you think Dad would have thought? About me marrying Nate Barton?”

“Well, he’d most likely insist on you keeping your name.”

“Wasn’t planning on changing it.” Although for a moment it would be nice not to be a Stark, not to have the press constantly wondering what she was doing. She was the most famous heiress since Paris Hilton. Morgan Barton sounded like a farmer’s wife.

“And he’d never stop joking about being related to Hawkeye.” Mom got that look in her eyes, that far away gaze that meant she was thinking about something from long ago. 

“It’s time!” Lila Barton, one of her bridesmaids, called. 

They were getting married at the Stark farm, because Mom had insisted. She’d planned the entire thing, from the white tents covering the yard, to the red roses in golden pots all along the white stone pathway she’d had built for this one moment. “Let me do something extravagant for once. Your father would have loved it.”

Morgan waited inside until her mom and the girls had gone ahead, marching to music played by the orchestra up in front. Now. This was the moment when the rest of her life would begin.

She stepped outside and held out her hand.

The figure appeared soaring through the skies, on queue, even though they hadn’t rehearsed it. Gold and red shined from the old Iron Man suit as the figure slowed down and used his thrusters to land gently right next to Morgan. 

The mask opened to reveal her Uncle Rhodey, though he still hated that she called him that. “Hey, kid,” he said. “Ready to get married?”

It had been her idea. The closest she could ever get to having her father walk her down the aisle. At first she’d considered an automated suit, but Uncle Rhodey had made the offer, even before he’d known there was to be a suit involved. 

(He hadn’t been the only one to offer. Uncles Bruce, Scott, Steve, Bucky, Sam and Clint himself had all put their hands in the ring. Morgan chose the man her father considered a brother.)

“Yep. I’m not sure he is, though.” She nodded up where she could see Nate standing next to his father, looking absolutely terrified. 

Rhodey laughed. “Let’s get you down there, baby girl.”

He let the mask slide back into place, but Morgan put her hand on his arm. “No. Keep it open. You deserve this, too.”

“Your dad should be here,” he said when the mask slid open, his eyes wet. 

“He is,” she insisted, and took his hand.

Time to get married.

 

**\+ 1 The Time She Just Needed Her Mom**

Clint had been holding the baby when he started to cry, a full on wail that Morgan was sure they could hear throughout the halls of the hospital. “Aw, baby, no.”

“He’s probably hungry.” Mom took the newborn from him, and the wails turned to whimpers. “Go on and keep Nate busy. Morgan needs some sleep.”

He gave her a nod and took a moment to touch Morgan on the shoulder. “You did good, kid.”

She didn’t feel right until Mom put the baby - her son! - into her arms. He stopped crying and nuzzled against her. “Mom,” she said, panic rising in her voice. “I don’t know how to do this.”

They’d gone to parenting classes, she and Nate, because he was the youngest of three and she an only and neither of them had any idea what to do. His sister had twins a few years ago, and the idea of that chaos had Morgan in a panic until her first ultrasound. Nothing had prepared her for the moment they’d put her child in her arms.

She was absolutely terrified.

“No one does.” Mom sat next to her and took hold of the baby’s hand with his teeny tiny fingers. “You’ll figure it out. I have it on good authority that my daughter is pretty smart.”

“Yeah, when it comes to mechanical engineering. Not. Baby raising.”

“You’ll be fine. I’ll be here to help, and you know Clint and Laura will be too.”

She swallowed and stared down at his itty bitty nose and tiny lips. There was one person who should have been here who wasn’t, and sometimes she didn’t understand how she could miss someone so much when the only memories she had were small and far away. 

“What do you think Dad would say?” She asked hesitantly. “That we named him Anthony?”

“Honestly?” she chuckled. “He’s probably have something sarcastic to say about sharing a grandchild with Clint.”

“Mom. Seriously.”

Mom reached out and smoothed Morgan’s hair, dark like her father’s. She wondered if her son would resemble him in any way.

“I am. Sarcasm is how your father showed affection. But luckily he recorded something for this very occasion.” She got up and reached for her purse left on one of the visitor chairs. Mom took out a holo projector, a very old fashioned one, and hit play.

“So right now, baby girl, you and your momma are sleeping, so shhh.” He looked so young in the holo, it had been before he’d started to go gray in the beard. “Let me tell you watching her go through that...Your mom’s the strongest woman I know. Hands down. And I know she’s given that strength to you. The most I can promise to hand down is being good at math and a propensity for addiction, which, I’m really sorry about.”

Morgan stifled a laugh and curled her son closer to her body.

“Sometimes I think about my dad, and if he felt the same thing I feel right now looking at you when he was looking at baby me. You’ll find out that my dad and me didn’t always have the best relationship. But the good news is, I know exactly what not to do. I’ll tell you I love you, every single day of your life, kiddo. I love you.”

The holo winked out. 

“He did that, didn’t he? Tell me he loved me every day.” Morgan blinked back tears.

“He did.” Mom smiled, as if now she could remember without crying. “Do you want me to take Tony back to the nursery?”

“No. I think I’ll keep him here a little longer. I’ll call the nurse when I’m ready.”

“All right. Good night, Morgan. I’ll be back bright and early tomorrow.” Mom leaned over and kissed her forehead.

“Night, Mom.” 

She left Morgan alone with her son. Morgan traced his tiny ears, marveling at such perfection. “I love you three thousand,” she whispered softly, and then amended, “No. Three thousand and one.”


	2. Bonus

**Bonus - age 8**

Morgan stomped on the way to the garage. She was old enough to ride her bike without training wheels, no matter what Mom said. She’d prove it too.

Dad had to have wrenches in his garage. She’d find one and take the stupid wheels off herself. Then she’d show mom, and everyone else, especially the Barton kids who liked to show off on their bikes whenever they came to visit. And Nate was younger than she was!

Morgan couldn’t stand that.

She went to the garage, put her palm on the sensor and said the secret password that Dad had taught her. Dad would totally approve of her taking the training wheels off herself. He always liked it when she used his tools.

Thinking about him made her sad, and Morgan didn’t want to be sad. She wanted to be angry! She wanted to rage about the unfairness of it all. She was eight. She should be able to do this.

When the door slid open, and she stepped inside, she felt prickling on the back of her neck. She wasn’t alone. But who else had Daddy’s secret password?

She turned a corner and nearly jumped. There stood a man in a fancy suit and tie, in front of a red and gold schwinn bike - a brand new bike without training wheels.

He smiled at her. “Morgan Stark? My name is Phil Coulson. I’m here to teach you how to ride a bike.”


End file.
